Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Prof U of Toronto. Studying illiberalism, race, periphery: how are these three connected? East and South peripheries of the EU. Jews, Muslims, Islamophobia, antisemitism.
Author of White But Not Quite: Central Europe's Illiberal Revolt. ..
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Prof U of Toronto. Studying illiberalism, race, periphery: how are these three connected? East and South peripheries of the EU. Jews, Muslims, Islamophobia, antisemitism.
Author of White But Not Quite: Central Europe's Illiberal Revolt.
Ivan Kalmar is a Czechoslovakian-born Canadian professor.
Source: Wikipedia
Political science
53%
Sociology
25%
Trump gives Hungary one-year exemption from Russian energy sanctions
The opt-out comes despite the US increasing pressure on allies to sever economic ties with Russia.
www.bbc.com
Orbán is not "echoing" Trump, as the article says. He was there first. Trump is echoing him, if anything.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Muslim surveillance: The real story behind the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism
In May 2016, an organisation of Western governments headquartered in Berlin, called the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), adopted a definition of anti-Semitism that incorporates …
www.middleeastmonitor.com
Fascinating article by James Renton on the origins of the IHRA definition of antisemitism, and its entanglements with islamophobia.
www.middleeastmonitor.com/20251028-mus...
www.middleeastmonitor.com/20251028-mus...
PAMIĘĆ POLSKO-AFRYKAŃSKA
Komunikat Stowarzyszenia NIGDY WIĘCEJ
#1listopada Stowarzyszenie NIGDY WIĘCEJ uczciło pamięć polskich uchodźców zmarłych w Afryce w latach II wojny światowej i zaapelowało o humanitarne traktowanie uchodźców we współczesnej Polsce.
www.nigdywiecej.org/komunikaty/r...
Komunikat Stowarzyszenia NIGDY WIĘCEJ
#1listopada Stowarzyszenie NIGDY WIĘCEJ uczciło pamięć polskich uchodźców zmarłych w Afryce w latach II wojny światowej i zaapelowało o humanitarne traktowanie uchodźców we współczesnej Polsce.
www.nigdywiecej.org/komunikaty/r...
What an amazing, important project.
Reposted by Ivan Kalmár
PAMIĘĆ POLSKO-AFRYKAŃSKA
Komunikat Stowarzyszenia NIGDY WIĘCEJ
#1listopada Stowarzyszenie NIGDY WIĘCEJ uczciło pamięć polskich uchodźców zmarłych w Afryce w latach II wojny światowej i zaapelowało o humanitarne traktowanie uchodźców we współczesnej Polsce.
www.nigdywiecej.org/komunikaty/r...
Komunikat Stowarzyszenia NIGDY WIĘCEJ
#1listopada Stowarzyszenie NIGDY WIĘCEJ uczciło pamięć polskich uchodźców zmarłych w Afryce w latach II wojny światowej i zaapelowało o humanitarne traktowanie uchodźców we współczesnej Polsce.
www.nigdywiecej.org/komunikaty/r...
Slovak cartoon: "Politicians have made a law to set up a walking speed limit of 6 km/h. Finally! A measure to slow down the departure of young people from the country."
From the europe community on Reddit: It seems we are witnessing the largest demonstration in Budapest so far
Explore this post and more from the europe community
www.reddit.com
Hundreds of thousands demonstrate in Budapest against the Orbán government, while opposition leader Péter Magyar leads in the polls with an agenda ("moderate" to be sure) of social justice.
www.reddit.com/r/europe/com...
www.reddit.com/r/europe/com...
Hungary to ensure Putin can enter Budapest for summit with Trump – Europe live
Russian president is facing arrest warrrant from International Criminal Court for war crimes
www.theguardian.com
In Egypt, Trump explicitly wished Orbán good luck in the upcoming elections. Choosing to meet with Putin in Budapest is another gift to this architectsof "illiberal democracy," who is facing a very serious electoral challenge.
www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...
www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Oct 7
Výsledek je pro nás šok, překonali jsme kritickou masu, říká vedoucí iniciativy Zakroužkuj ženu
„Před čtyřmi lety jsme co chvíli četli, jak si vymýšlíme a že si tu ženy přece žijí úplně stejný život jako muži a my chceme jen tupě prosazovat jedno pohlaví bez ohledu na kompetence,“ říká v rozhovo...
denikn.cz
It seems that in the Czech parliamentary election, there was a successful effort by voters to elect female candidates.
denikn.cz/1859395/vysl...
denikn.cz/1859395/vysl...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Oct 5
Volby 2025 a Kanada - Výsledky voleb online
Volby 2025: Kanada – aktuální výsledky online – průběžné i konečné. Všechny informace o volbách a jejich průběhu přehledně.
www.seznamzpravy.cz
In the Czech parliamentary elections, parties from the left to the centre-right received 89.59% of the vote, and A. Babiš's "populist" ANO only 3.24% - among Czech voters in Canada. (Not quite so back home.)
www.seznamzpravy.cz/p/vysledky-v...
www.seznamzpravy.cz/p/vysledky-v...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Sep 28
Sorosék ellen hamarosan vádat emelhetnek
A Trump-kormányzat ezzel a USAID leépítése után a baloldali korrupciós hálózat másik fontos pillérét ütheti ki.
magyarnemzet.hu
Orbán's mouthpiece newspaper Magyar Nemzet revels in Trump's plans to prosecute George Soros, Orbán's long-term obsession. This is perhaps the most striking of the many parallels between Hungarian and American autocracy today.
magyarnemzet.hu/kulfold/2025...
magyarnemzet.hu/kulfold/2025...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Sep 12
POLITICO Poll of Polls — Slovakian polls, trends and election news for Slovakia
POLLING FROM ACROSS EUROPE. UPDATED DAILY. Slovakia — National parliament voting intention What is Poll of Polls and how does it work? Read more here. Slovakia — European election 2024 results…
www.politico.eu
The Progressive Slovakia party is the country's most popular, ahead of the leading "populist" Smer.
www.politico.eu/europe-poll-...
www.politico.eu/europe-poll-...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Sep 5
Ukraine/Russia: Statement by the High Representative on the latest Russian attacks against Ukraine
This statement is supported by 26 EU Member States (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembo...
www.eeas.europa.eu
Looks like even Fico could not refuse to sign this statement; Orbán could.
www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/ukraine...
www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/ukraine...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Sep 2
Slovak Prime Minister Fico to meet Xi, Putin, Zelenskiy this week
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico will hold bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at China's World War Two anniversary celebrations in Beijing this week, Fico said on Monday.
www.reuters.com
Even his mentor Viktor Orbán is not doing this.
www.reuters.com/world/china/...
www.reuters.com/world/china/...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Sep 1
Andrej Babis: Czech opposition leader hit in head with crutch at rally
Andrej Babis's party blamed the government for creating a climate of hate against the ex-PM.
www.bbc.com
For his sake, let's wish him a speedy recovery and for the country's sake, let's wish this doesn't make him more likely to be elected.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Aug 21
Szijjártó: Trump did not call Viktor Orbán after his talks with European leaders
The reports about such a call are false according to the minister. He did not, however, exclude the possibility of Budapest hosting talks between Zelensky and Putin.
telex.hu
Orbán's geopolitical ideology in a nutshell: Hungary is a "Western country," but the only one with a good relationship with Russia.
telex.hu/english/2025...
telex.hu/english/2025...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Aug 11
Lecture of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán at the 34th Bálványos Summer Free University and Student Camp - The official website of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen, Distinguished Attendees at the Free University.
miniszterelnok.hu
"Ukraine should not be admitted to the European Union, bringing in the war with it – even if the whole of Brussels responds by throwing a fit." - Viktor Orbán
miniszterelnok.hu/en/lecture-o...
miniszterelnok.hu/en/lecture-o...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Aug 5
Interesting word of the day: tsundoku 積ん読 (Japanese) - to buy books and not read them or only read a part of them. Apparently this is considered to be a positive thing in Japan, as you may possibly read the works later.
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 31
The idea of Central (and NOT Eastern) Europe has been around for some 200 years. Is it anti-E-Eur racism? Is it the vision of a global role for a marginalized area? Nationalities Papers has now accepted our Special Issue proposal on the topic. @salvapappalardo.bsky.social @brasky.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 25
There is a Horizon Synergy grant call out, on antisemitism in Europe. If anyone is involved in that and would like me and the University of Toronto to come on board with a project connecting antisemitism and Islamophobia, then let me know.(Or if you know someone who might be interested.)
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 25
Opinion | I Watched It Happen in Hungary. Now It’s Happening Here.
www.nytimes.com
Remember when people said Western democracy failed in the East because the Eastern Europe was "so different"? Well it's been failing in the West too—because the crisis of liberal capitalism is global. Glad @ambpressman.bsky.social avoids that tired East-West trope.
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 20
Usyk vs Dubois 2: Oleksandr Usyk & 'Ivan' - the untouchable duo who can't be beaten?
BBC Sport looks at where Oleksandr Usyk ranks among the all-time heavyweight greats and who in the current generation could beat him.
www.bbc.com
"Ivan is a Ukrainian name. Ivan is a big guy who lives in a village and works for his family. It's a hard punch, Ivan." Might Usyk have named his left hook after Rocky's Cold War nemesis, Ivan Drago? Was Ivan Ukrainian?
www.bbc.com/sport/boxing...
www.bbc.com/sport/boxing...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 18
Poland withdraws ambassador to Hungary in row over asylum for opposition politician
notesfrompoland.com
The Polish ambassador to Budapest has been recalled, marking perhaps the worst turn in Polish-Hungarian relations since Donald Tusk became the prime minister of Poland.
notesfrompoland.com/2025/07/18/p...
notesfrompoland.com/2025/07/18/p...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 13
Trump is lying again. EU-US tariffs on each other are similar overall. (The EU does protect its farm products, while the US gets a large surplus from exporting services.) Don't expect this nonsense to stop, though.
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 6
SPOLU oslabilo v průzkumech méně, než se čekalo. A co ostatní formace?
Podle průzkumu společnosti STEM by sněmovní volby v červnu opět vyhrálo hnutí ANO s 30,9 procenta. Preference koalice SPOLU lehce klesly, stále by ale zůstala druhá s 20,5 procenta. Třetí by skončila ...
www.lidovky.cz
Czech poll shows the "populist" ANO party way ahead of the rest, with about 30% support.
www.lidovky.cz/domov/volebn...
www.lidovky.cz/domov/volebn...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jul 4
Szijjártó: A határ a csillagos ég Magyarország és az Egyesült Államok kapcsolatában
„Trump elnökkel a világ biztonságosabbá vált. Az újabb háborúk rövidebbek lettek, a régiek pedig, úgy tűnik, hogy kifulladnak.”
444.hu
"Since Donald Trump took office, practically everything has changed in the world. (...) We Hungarians are pround that we are among the standard bearers of this revulution." Hungarian FM Péter Szijjártó.
444.hu/2025/07/02/s...
444.hu/2025/07/02/s...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jun 30
Farewell to the liberal consensus: the intellectualisation of political projects in Poland and Hungary - European Political Science
The article investigates the intellectual foundations of the political projects led by Jarosław Kaczyński and Viktor Orbán. We demonstrate that next to homegrown populist and traditionalist ideas, the...
link.springer.com
Great article by @zsolt.bsky.social and B. Stanley. As I've been trying to say also, illiberalism in "Eastern Europe" has never been unrelated to "the West" or "anti-Western." Also because, as Z and S show, the West isn't what it used to be.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jun 28
Orbán vs. von der Leyen: Budapest Pride takes center stage in Europe’s culture war
Dozens of prominent European politicians are heading to Hungary for Pride, but the country’s conservative government insists the parade is illegal.
www.politico.eu
It's not really a culture war. It's a clash opposing people who respect others and love in its many forms, to people who don't respect others and also don't respect love. Both kind are found in all cuiltures, in Hungary as much as elsewhere.
www.politico.eu/article/orba...
www.politico.eu/article/orba...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jun 25
Mostantól az állam elővásárlási jogot kaphat minden eladó magyar cégre - Forbes.hu
Módosították a külföldiek részesedésszerzésére vonatkozó rendeletet, ami teljes bizonytalanságot hozhat a magyar cégpiacra.
forbes.hu
The Orbán government declares that it has the right to buy any Hungarian company before it is sold to foreigners.
forbes.hu/uzlet/fevasa...
forbes.hu/uzlet/fevasa...
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
· Jun 24
The Telegram channels spreading pro-Russian propaganda in Poland
Telegram channels sharing disinformation in Polish are pushing the Kremlin’s narrative, experts warn.
www.bbc.com
It's very likely that this is directed from Russia, but the methodological problem is how to prove it - that it's not just Russia sympathizers spontaneously reposting.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...